Our Story

It all started when…

Jonathan and his wife Emily spent seven years living in Paris, where Jonathan managed one of the city’s finest boutique wine shops and several top contemporary bistros. Back in Wellington, they were inspired to open a restaurant influenced by the natural wine bars of Paris, London and Copenhagen: Relaxed, rowdy establishments with a serious approach to wine and food.

As a wine buyer, Jonathan got to know the winemakers leading the natural wine revolution in France and he now works with them to import directly for glass. These, along with the New Zealand wines that appear our list, are wines made with minimal intervention and an excess of skill and finesse, by producers who, no matter what side of the globe they’re on, share a common passion. We have close relationships with all of our winemakers and regularly invite them to the restaurant to share their wines directly with you.

Led by the French bistronomie movement, which goes hand-in-hand with natural wine, our menu puts modern spins on traditional bistro dishes. We’re committed to using ethically and sustainably sourced ingredients while never wavering in the pursuit of outstanding flavour. We’re proud to work with producers such as Peoples Coffee, Awatoru Wild Foods for meat and fish, Zany Zeus for dairy products and...

At glass, we want you to put your elbows on the table while you consume your steak frites, and slosh your champagne on the table over animated conversation. We strive to be the very essence of joie de vivre - serious about everything we do, including having fun.